Happy Birthday Obsidian Jade
by CeredwenFlame
Summary: This is a present for her.  I own nothing of Bleach.  Enjoy
1. Chapter 1

**This is a Birthday Present for Obsidian Jade, author of Red Duty, Black Honor and Bonds of Honor as well as many other fics. This will be a little more than a one shot but not much more. Once it is completed either the next 'chapter' or one more that will be it, just so you know. So Happy Birthday Jade, I hope you enjoy this!**

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Seconds crawled by like days. Minutes felt like weeks. Had it been an eternity? Some moments, it certainly felt like it had. The war still raged. How long would the madness continue? Neither side could gain a foothold long enough to turn the tide. It seems like it was going to be an eternal, endless back and forth. Had they really reached a stalemate?

How much blood stained the sands of Hueco Mundo? How many faded ghosts would meet their final end in the battlefield the living world had become? How many comrades had they lost? How many more would have to die before the conflict was finally ended? It maddened him that there seemed to be no answers to these questions.

He was distracted... which bothered him even more. He was ever the consummate captain and yet... worry grew inside his soul. The most recent team to leave for Hueco Mundo should have been back already. They were due back nearly an hour ago now and every minute that ticked by without their return only made the worry grow.

Time had proven to change him once again. He would perhaps never fully return to the fiery, brash youth he'd been... But he had more life to him now than anyone had seen from him in years... He was not quite so vibrant as the one that inspired such a change in him perhaps... But he was alive again. No longer did he live the half life he had consigned himself to upon the death of his wife. Of course it was somehow easier to change now that he was whole again.

As good a change as that was... it worried him... Should something happen, should anything go wrong how could he ever return to living half a life? Would he be able to continue? Would he be strong enough? Or would his strength fade with that vibrant red that colored his world? He couldn't allow himself to think of it. There was paper work to complete and as a Captain it was his duty to keep up with all aspects of what his job entailed.

He knew as well as any that being due back from a mission was not always a guarantee that you would be able to return at that time. Things did not always go according to plan. You at times had to improvise and do the best you could with what you had. Which meant that sometimes you were delayed. He attempted to convince himself that it was merely that and nothing more. The team was delayed and they would return. Their mission would be successful and they would come home a little worse for wear perhaps, but they would all return.

Still worry niggled at the back of his mind. Were it not for years of training to contain and practically ignore such distractions he might not have been able to complete the day's work. He closed his eyes, drew in a slow, deep breath and centered himself once again. He returned to task, even if his heart wasn't in it.

They were battered, bruised and bedraggled. The grit of the sand felt coarser than gravel and the heat... Never mind the heat. The Hollow had pummeled them pretty hard. They'd nearly been overwhelmed. Two of the squad of 15 would not be going home. There was still too much sand between them and the 'extraction' point. Too damned much sand.

They'd found some cover and were tending to their injuries the best they could. It had been days perhaps... Too damned hard to keep track of time's movement in this damned place. What medical supplies they had were starting to run low... and their dedicated healer? He was exhausted - they all were - and he'd sustained his own fair share of damage in the battles they'd fought, lost and barely won on this mission.

They'd lost a lot of equipment in the fights too. The only real tech they had left was the map that would guide them back to their way home and out of this forsaken wasteland.

"How much further is it?" One of his men asked.

" 'bout half a day... unless we get in another several battles."

"When were we supposed to be getting back?" another asked.

"About an hour ago... near as I can figure." Came the weary response. He sagged back against the rock... One of a small outcropping - there weren't many of them in this damnable wasteland. They were taking refuge where they could find it... He longed for his own bed... A hot bath, a real meal... home and peace. He was tired. Very tired of this war... of the endless battles. He was tired of watching good men and women give their lives... Tired of watching peers fall...

He was just tired... they all were. They didn't get many opportunities to sleep and when they did it was never long enough. Sleeping in shifts for no more than perhaps an hour here or there was hardly enough. They had gathered a lot of information though and hopefully that would be useful. Any little bit of something they could get might be that one thing that would change the tide.

They had to keep holding on to any scrap of hope they could find. This had been raging on for so long now, too long. One hundred years from when that bastard first started his plotting and scheming and how many more since they actually learned all this? For now they were able to gain a little ground here, stall him there... But right now that's all they were doing. At least, that's what it felt like. But when you're dealing with someone that put over a century into just planning something... It wasn't going to be some quick thing to end it. He understood that. He just hated it. They all hated it. Every last one of them. Oh some of them might hide it well... But every last person in soul society was so sick and tired of this damned war it wasn't funny.

Sand and grit and wind and dust… Sometimes it kicked up so bad that you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. It burned and stung but there was little they could do. They had their traveling uniforms - the cloaks hooded to help guard against the sand and sun but they'd been here long enough and in more than enough battles that most of their cloaks weren't very helpful anymore. He sighed and took a swig of the water from his canteen. Nel had found a water source for them and refilled their canteens… But they were getting close to having to ration it again.

He felt a shift in energy. His head whipped in the direction that he sensed it coming from. "INCOMING!" He called out. His squad scrambled trying to get ready. He couldn't see how many were coming… but they had to be ready for whatever might be coming after them. Zanpakuto at the ready they held their ground…

Only to see a green haired woman perching atop the stones with a few rather odd looking comrades. Renji breathed a sigh of relief. "Nel."

"He's sending a squad this way. We hoped to get to you first."

"You made it."

"You do not have long you have to get moving again, Renji. Tell Itsy-go he needs to come visit me soon."

"I will."

"Go, now we'll try to distract them as long as we can."

"Thank you Nel."

She only nodded and one of the two odd fellows accompanying her laid some fresh canteens at their feet.

"Thank you." The members of the squad said as they exchanged nearly empty canteens for full ones.

"Go." Nel urged and soon Renji was making his squad get on the move again. So much for resting.

"I know you are tired… I know we needed a longer break than that but it's going to have to be long enough. Nel will buy us what time she can. Conserve that fresh canteen as much as you can. It might only be half a day to our way out of here but we've already seen just how much longer things can take here." Renji instructed as they all took off using shunpo.

They would have to stop again to rest at the first opportunity and when they got back to Soul Society many if not all of them were probably going to collapse from exhaustion and slight malnourishment. For now, he could only hope that adrenaline and water could sustain them until they reached their goal. As they got clear of sight of the outcropping of rocks Renji could hear the sounds of a fight breaking out. Needless to say it spurred them all on to push themselves a little harder.

There wasn't much more to give though. Renji knew just how much they were going to pay for this… he just hoped they could hold out until they were back in Soul Society.


	2. Chapter 2

Half a day just half a day - if they could survive it. He would have to strive very hard to make them survive somehow… His mind turned to cool gray eyes and he promised he would get home…

He felt a shiver go along the zanpakuto mark upon his back. When he inquired as to what happened, the spirit of his blade was not entirely certain himself. "For a moment it was as if that baboon and snake were here… but it was gone so fleetingly…" Senbonzakura explained.

Dare he hope that Renji was alive? Or was the connection now so deep that his own longing was being transferred to his zanpakuto? While he knew that he and Renji could hear each other's sword spirits and while it had had some interesting results, no one could tell them how strong that connection was or really anything of use about it. It seemed to be a very odd occurrence indeed.

"I worry for our companion as well. But for some reason I do not believe that he is dead…" Senbonzakura offers.

"I hope your instinct is correct."

"As do I." The spirit said with a soft sigh before returning back into the silence of Byakuya's inner world… The Captain returned to his work… One thought lingering in his mind… ~Return to me Renji.~

Renji felt his markings pulse for a moment with a faint but intimately familiar energy… and it bolstered his flagging spirit… He had to keep his spirits high for the sake of the squad he'd been leading through this madness… He wasn't sure why, but he felt for a moment that he could almost sense his husband's energy. That cool, cherry blossom scented ripple of power and precision… it had flickered through his zanpakuto markings for only a heartbeat but he had felt it.

He was brought out of his mental revelry by a now all too familiar sound - the roar of Hollow. "Positions people… we've got trouble coming." He called out. The rag tag and weary group put their backs together and formed a circle so they could best protect themselves from any direction. Once they knew from whence the attack was coming they would shift accordingly. They could probably do this part in their sleep now they'd been forced to repeat it so many times since coming to Hueco Mundo.

The battle raged. He didn't know what class these things were anymore. They were so tired, their strength taxed so deeply that these could be the most basic Hollow and they'd probably be having just as much trouble. Two more fell a young man named Sanosuke Keishi and a woman named Hana Aikio. Rikichi was wounded again and the last of their healing supplies were now gone. Even Renji had a few cuts and scrapes but his seemed minor compared to those his squad bore...

He ripped pieces off of his kosode and turned it into makeshift bandages... His cloak was still fairly well in tact so that would have to suffice for now. Rikichi protested. "Don't start. We need bandages and my cloak is still mostly in tact s' don't argue." Came his gruff retort. By the time he was finished, he no longer had a kosode, but all the wounds that needed it had been bandaged and the even had some left over.

"Everyone squared away?" Renji asked, looking over his squad. They looked a lot worse for wear. He could already feel the exhaustion creeping in, pushing the adrenaline out of the way. He looked at the map, the screen was cracked but thankfully it was still working. "Lets move. I don't know about you but the sooner we get back to Seiretei the better." He says in a tone that's just starting to belie his true state of exhaustion.

The group hobbled along. Huddled together as much for the support of the injured as for protection. Renji led them, just a little ahead of the pack, his own gait hampered by the pain of his injuries and deep seated fatigue. ~ You need to rest, all of you do or you are not going to make the garganta.~ A familiar, sibilant hiss echoed..

"Can't stop, if we stop now, we'll never get moving again..." Renji answered his spirit's nudging.

~Your squad is about to collapse... and so are you. Now is not the time to be stubborn.~ The nue protested.

"Now is exactly the time to be stubborn... got to get them to the garganta Uruhara has set up. Can't stop till we reach it. Have to reach it Zabimaru... we're stretched too thin as it is... if we stop now, every last one of us is gonna snap and ain't a one of us gonna make it. Do what you can Zabimaru, talk to their zanpakuto... we need you with us to make this last leg of the journey. Lost too much already... not gonna lose anymore." Renji's mental voice was tired... But both the baboon and snake nodded and moved off.

He hoped that it would help. He didn't know what they would be able to accomplish but if the spirits could some how bolster the flagging reserves anything might help. Since Zabimaru was already acquainted with speaking with Senbonzakura and all of the zanpakuto spirits seemed to be able to communicate with each other... they may not like to, but they were at least capable. He just hoped it would do something. Personally, he felt ready to drop already.


	3. Chapter 3

Fifteen minus... six left nine. Of the fifteen shinigami that had been sent to Hueco Mundo on this mission only nine would be returning. Four men and two women had lost their lives in the sullen land of sand and they weren't home free yet. The map was still beeping though and they were close, almost close enough to see it now. But almost wasn't quite good enough. Almost was still only almost and that meant they could still get attacked.

It started with the faintest rumbling of the ground beneath their feet. They were beyond desperately tired now. It was sheer will that kept their feet moving towards that seemingly out of reach location. Of course with all this sand and very little else, it was sometimes hard to believe that you were actually getting closer to your goal.

The gigantic centipede like hollow burst forth from the sand knocking the rag tag, weary shinigami flying this way and that. The map began ringing an alarm... Renji perked up hearing it. They were close enough to their way out that the machine was automatically contacting Uruhara to let him know to open the garganta back to Soul Society... There was hope... just a little tattered corner of it - but it was there nonetheless.

He sprang to his feet, wavering but he somehow managed to refrain from collapsing right back down again. Though he wanted to - oh how part of him wanted to. "Help's comin' just hold on a little longer." His voice called out. Rough and weary you could hear the soul deep exhaustion in it but it carried well enough he hoped. He managed to get Zabimaru to wake up into Shikai but he knew he just didn't have the energy for Bankai - he hoped they wouldn't need it.

It was going to be hard but he had to try. He felt the pull deep in his soul, he felt his body tremble with the exertion... but Renji was stubborn likely to a fault and perhaps that alone would be enough. It was going to have to be. Those left tried to gather way desperate energy they had left. They stood their ground, swords drawn - level but shaky in their grip... The battle started... dodging slow enough to narrowly miss being caught - some gaining more injuries... It was bad... What made it worse was that this was a Hollow that had they been fresh and not on their last reserves they'd have finished it quickly... But now? Now they were just trying to stay alive.

It lunged for Rikichi. Fangs caught the boy's leg causing him to cry out in pain. The 6th squad resident healer just wasn't fast enough. Renji moved... he could feel the energy shift. The garganta was opening and the Hollow was gearing up for a Cero blast. He dropped shikai... using the slight regain of energy to close the distance to Rikichi with shunpo. He picked the younger shinigami up and gave that sharp whistle letting everyone know the Garganta was coming... then, he broke out at a dead run for the slit opening up in the sky.

The hollow gave chase. He couldn't think about it. Just get to the other side, they'll be safe. Just keep running, keep everyone together and get Rikichi to Unohana. That was all he could think about. It felt like it was taking forever. The pathway was jagged and wild from their weakened energies and frantic states... but it was holding and that was all that really mattered - right? So long as they had the path they could get home.

But this was the method by which Hollows traveled as well and the thing was not giving up. "Just a little further." He called out hoping to bolster the nearly wiped out spirits of what was left of his squad. He prayed he wasn't lying. Finally they saw waning twilight and familiar white walls... Seireitei... Home. The light at the end of the tunnel. So close, so very close. The pendant thumped against his chest and he felt a shiver of energy go through his zanpakuto marks.

They broke through, but the Hollow was hot on their heels and getting ready to fire another Cero. "Scatter." Renji heard the words and hoped his ears weren't playing tricks on him. He was so tired and Rikichi, though small was growing heavier in his arms by the minute. "Captain, look out." Rikichi croaked out weakly... and Renji tried to dodge, but the Cero blast caught his left side. The last thing he remembered was a pink blur rushing past him before he hit the ground.

He woke later surrounded by oddly familiar comfort. He couldn't get his eyes to cooperate at first but the first attempt to move told him his midsection was bandaged as were his arms and one of his legs. There was a smell that teased the edges of memory... his mind desperately working through the fog and haze unconsciousness for an undetermined amount of time had caused. It took some time but finally his mind seemed to sort itself out... and the smell told him one thing - he was home.

His eyes blinked open and he looked around to make sure it wasn't just his desperate mind playing tricks on him. At this point, he wouldn't be surprised if it was. His room, his bed... familiar, warm, comfortable... All the things that marked this as home were present... save for perhaps the most important. A moment later, that too righted itself.

In walked the keeper of his heart corny as it might sound. His better half perhaps... his lover... his husband... He relaxed that much more. He tried to offer Byakuya a smile, but a throbbing in his head made him wince. "Captain Unohana says you are to take it easy. Your wounds have been mostly healed but you were so badly exhausted that she must wait for your reiatsu to replenish itself before she dares to attempt to do more than stabilize you." Byakuya explained.

Renji sighed. "So... how is it I'm here in our bed and not locked up in one of the ones at the 4th?" Renji asked. His voice was weak and raspy from lack of use. "How long have I been out?"

"Several days. I managed to coerce the good Captain to allow me to bring you home to rest somewhere more familiar. She has been here at regular intervals every day to check on you. Rikichi is fine, though he won't be up and walking around for a little while yet. Aside from being exhausted, the Hollow's attack managed to do some nerve damage. Again Unohana must wait for his reiatsu to return enough to facilitate the healing that needs to be done."

"The rest of the squad that made it back?"

"Being treated for exhaustion, dehydration, mild malnourishment and a multitude of injuries none of which were as severe as those you and Rikichi endured."

"Good.. good.." Renji said with a yawn. He felt so very tired.

"Will you be alright, Renji?" Byakuya inquired, his tone concerned.

"Lost six people... but yeah... I guess I'll be fine eventually." He says with a shrug that pulls his bandaged middle making him wince again.

"Urahara has been going over the information your team gathered. Due to the nature of our opponent it is hard to say how truly valuable it will all prove in the end, but even the scientist is optimistic. Their sacrifices need not be in vain, Renji."

"If Urahara is optimistic it must be something..." Renji said with a deeper yawn.

"You should rest."

"I know... but 'm just glad to be home. Glad to be back... Glad to see you again."

Byakuya smiled... "I am glad you have returned as well. You had me quite worried you know... it was distracting."

"Sorry 'bout that. Won't happen again." Renji joked tiredly. If only it didn't have to be a joke... but they both knew what the battlefield could be like.

Byakuya only nodded... Renji still looked so tired, so worn - had Unohana not assured him that Renji would make a full recovery, he might still be worried.

"I should leave you to rest."

"Don't go. Sit with me... just till I fall asleep?" Renji asks. "I missed you... kept thinkin' 'bout you, 'bout getting home. I think even Zabimaru missed you... we were so desperate to return that for a brief moment I could almost feel that energy - feel you and Senbonzakura... must have been my imagination... but it helped me keep going." Renji explained tiredly as Byakuya moved to sit beside him on the bed. His hand went to Renji's unbound crimson locks and gently sifted through them as much to calm himself and to reassure himself that Renji was here and okay as it was to comfort Renji.

"We felt you as well." Byakuya confessed.

"Some day we might have to let the scientist do some tests to figure out just how far this connection goes."

"It goes as far as it needs, what more do we need know than that?" Byakuya inquires, his tone somewhat possessive... It made Renji smiled.

"Just each other." Renji said softly as he faded out to sleep.


End file.
